the new version of
Question:
1)What definition in Dictionary implies the '...ing' function of て,( as in 魚を食べている.)?
2) What definition in Dictionary implies the 'present perfect' function of て,( as in お前はもう死んでいる.)?
The old version of
Question:
Can 'verbABCている expressing the PAST'
be CONSIDERED as 'adverbialABC+いる'
and be UNDERSTOOD as 'is/exists+ABCly/in a state of ABC'?
You can follow the examples to understand my question well:
1)て verb as adverbial:
映画を見て食べる.
I eat watching the movie.
the adverbial is 見て and the verb is 食べる.
2)て-form for past events/states:
お前はもう死んでいる.
You already (have) died.
My proposition is:
Can we consider 死んで an adverbial in 2) of the verb いる and understand the sentence as:
お前はもう1(死んで)2(いる).
You already 1(dyingly/in a state of dying/in a state of having died)2(exist/are).
and only consider it a particular case of the general rule 1) where the 'past sense' is contained/hidden in 死んで being an adverbial?
Edit
Here's where I started thinking about this idea: て form and adverbial meaning
Answer
Yes it's adverbial in relation to the verb (predicate), but you can't say it's simply an adverb (you can't use a te-form verb alone as an adverb).
[MAIN VERB]
-ing while[OTHER VERB]
-ing", I'd expect to see the 「[OTHER VERB]
ながら[MAIN VERB]
」 construction instead. – Eiríkr Útlendi Jul 31 '20 at 22:05